The Hanging: From a Dog's Point of View
by Impashence
Summary: Ok, so it started out as an english project, and we had to rewrite the story from a different character's perspective... and i took the dog. XD I got an A because she liked it so much :D


Point of View: The Dog

It was in Burma, on that foggy, wet morning. Trudging through the rain was so dreary, and I had always hated being alone on such days as these. My shaggy brown coat felt heavy on my shoulders and I shook my body gently, letting the water roll from my back. Glancing about, I trotted softly over to a wall that appeared to be human-made. I jumped up and scratched at the cold, hard stone with my forepaws, hoping to draw attention. Human faces were a sight for sore eyes, and I longed to be able to see my master's smile once more.

Last month, humans very different from my master and his family visited our home. He left with them, and although I did not quite understand why my mistress was crying, I got the general feeling that it was not a happy occasion. Soon after, I was put out of the house, my mistress shouting through her tears as she tried to rid herself of the dog that had suddenly become such a burden to her. Ears drooping and tail between my legs, I ran. I have no recollection of how far or how long I ran; only the loneliness still haunts me. Nothing else compares to the vitality of life; my master and I had shared this less than a few days before.

I stopped my scratching and dropped to all fours once again, discouraged at the lack of response. Walking near the overgrown foliage, I kept my ears alert for any hint of human activity, in the hope that I might actually find a companion once more. Much to my delight, I found that the wall ended at a white wooden gate that was standing ajar. Human voices could be heard inside, and I listened carefully, discerning the differing tones and fluctuations as they spoke among themselves.

Nuzzling my way through the open fence I dashed into the clearing, barking loudly. Finding so many human beings together all at once was so thrilling and wonderful that I continued to bark. I jumped around the hands that reached for me, thinking it was all a game. I was sorely mistaken. As I looked around, I noticed how solemn their faces were. Glancing towards what had been the center of their attention, my heart leaped in excitement. _The master_.

I made a dash for him, caring nothing for the others trying to gasp a handful of my sparse fur. I reached him and immediately jumped up to lick his face, as I had always done. To my surprise and despair, no emotion showed from behind his dark eyes; the master I had known was gone, and in place of him they had left behind this creature, devoid of feeling or emotion. Backing away just in time, I managed to dodge the grasp of other human men, and even the rocks they threw at me. I came back, dancing around their groping fingers, growling and barking at them, "What have you done with my master? Where have you taken him?" When they finally managed to catch me, it was only because I had given up the fight, just as I had my home. With the handkerchief around my neck, I trotted alongside a rather lanky young man who seemed to be caught up in what my master was doing as he plodded before us. I whimpered, no longer wanting to be in this place of gloom and angry people, straining to be free once more.

Horrified, I watched them tie a rope around his neck. His head turned slightly to me and as our eyes met for the last time, I saw the master I had known. The cries that rolled off his tongue wrenched my heart and seemed to be calling me. With a soft whine, I watched my master's life become nothing more than the smoke of a snuffed candle. What light had remained behind those eyes was now gone. In their stead a swinging pendulum had been left, twisting heavily on the rope. The young man let me go and I ran to the gallows, sniffed the air just to be sure that he was no longer there, and then retreated to a dark corner where I sat shivering and shaking. The human voices picked up once again, laughter and joviality playing in the air that had just moments ago been so tense. I slipped quietly after them, my head hung and tail between my legs. I would leave the way I came, staying close to the encampment of humans only to mourn the loss of my master. Perhaps I would find where they buried him, and I could stay there for a while by his side. In any case, there would be no rest tonight, not while he was just a hundred yards away.


End file.
